Almost Elvis - Elvis Impersonators and Their Quest for the Crown

Starring:Steve Sogura, Quentin Flagg, Chadwick Vernon, James Lowrey, Irv Cass, Robert Washington (II), Doug Church, Rich Andrews
Director: John Paget
Product Type: DVD

Amazon.com

At the beginning of Almost Elvis, it is noted that imitating Elvis Presley is a "phenomenon unprecedented in world history," with the King being the most mimicked person ever. And there's no denying that in the time since Elvis was buried at Graceland, tens of thousands of disciples have grown out their sideburns, combed up their pompadours, and hit the stage gyrating. Among the performers profiled in this lighthearted documentary are a teenager born years after the death of his idol and a 60-year-old man who enjoys freaking out patrons at the local mall by looking like an Elvis who has aged. If you've ever wondered who makes all the costumes for the thousands of Elvis clones, there's a profile of a fellow who manufactures jumpsuits covered in rhinestones. Naturally the camera travels to Las Vegas, the mecca for all Elvis impersonators, visiting an Elvis convention and a slickly produced Elvis re-creation show. And there's even a visit to a contest where Elvis impersonators compete against each other. Most of the impersonators interviewed have a sense of humor about their obsession, and the documentary is a consistently fun look at people who just can't get enough of Elvis. --Robert J. McNamara

Customer Reviews:

CAN 50,000,000 ELVISES BE WRONG?.......2006-06-02

Like TRIBUTARY and SIMULATION, John Paget's ALMOST ELVIS suffers from wanting to include a cavalcade of Elvises rather than focusing on why these folks pay tribute to The King or how it feels to make a living off the memory of Elvis. More important, Paget ignores the folks who pay to see Elvis impersonators and barely touches on the cultural phenomenon of Elvis and the legions of people who choose to emulate him.

ALMOST ELVIS starts off strong, following the path to the 1999 Images of Elvis competition in Memphis, Tennessee. The main character of the documentary is Irv Cass of Niles, Michigan. Cass does one hell of a tribute to The King; his sideburns real, his voice strong, and his jumpsuit snug. While the cynosure of the film is the night of a hundred Elvises (which ends up looking rather shabby), ALMOST ELVIS indulges in a few vignettes, which feature other Elvis impersonators or trappings of the trade.

Too late in the game, the audience meets Robert Washington, a battleship painter who seems destined to never take the grand prize at the impending contest due to the color of his skin. The introduction of Washington and his racial "dilemma" opens a can of worms that no one in ALMOST ELVIS, including the filmmaker, seems comfortable in exploring. Even in this potentially objective arena, Washington gets short shrift.

If Washington is a serious Elvis impersonator being treated as something like a joke, another documentary takes a "joke" and shows the serious side of it, EL VEZ: EL REI DE ROCK `N' ROLL. This work examines El Vez, a "Latino novelty act." Director Marjorie Chodorov manages to go behind the perfectly coiffed façade of El Vez to present Robert Lopez, the brown bombshell's alter ego.

"This kid's got some moves, man.".......2005-07-15

Elvis impersonators have always fascinated me, so when I heard about the documentary "Almost Elvis: Elvis Impersonators and Their Quest for the Crown" I knew I had to watch it. "Almost Elvis" follows the trials and tribulations of several Elvis impersonators as they compete in the annual Images of Elvis contest held in Graceland (where else). The film begins with a regional contest that awards a $1,000 prize and qualifies an Elvis impersonator, the gregarious Irv Cass for a spot in the Graceland competition. We see the impersonators (even a 15 year old) behind the stage and performing. Some impersonators resort to fake sideburns, and others resort to plastic surgery.

One of the things I've never understood about Elvis impersonators is that so many of them don't really look like Elvis. The documentary set me straight, and tossed my pre-conceived notions to the winds. Apparently, it's not strictly necessary to be Elvis's twin--it's the goal of any self-respecting Elvis impersonator, apparently, to create the "illusion of Elvis." There can be only one King, and the impersonators must never, ever refer to themselves as Elvis.

In addition to examining the impersonators, this fascinating documentary takes the viewer into the Cult of Elvis--we see the fans, and even get a few juicy quotes from a bona fide Elvis scholar who analyzes the "nature vs. nurture theory" of Elvis impersonators and the fact that for Elvis fans, it's necessary for Elvis "to be embodied and present" through the impersonators. We also meet the colourful costume maker--a man with a theory about Elvis and world peace, and we get a behind the scenes look at how these costumes (which range from $1,000-$4,000) are made.

DVD extras include: the trailer, a segment of the making of the film, bios, Mystery Elvis, media interviews, and extra scenes. Elvis fans--and the curious--will find this documentary a fascinating, entertaining glimpse into another world. Thoroughly enjoyable--displacedhuman

Almost Elvis - Lots of Fun - Very Interesting.......2003-09-12

This is one fantastic DVD ,loaded to the max with high energy fun and very enjoy able to watch.My wife and I really had a nice evening watching this sweet gem of a movie.
The main reason I gave this movie a 4 star rating is only because the really Elvis deserves 5 stars.SEveral of the Elvis impersonators where very good.And a few of the others were not....would I dare say as good.....but it was very interesting and fun to see how far someone would go to become Elvis.
And for my money the man who won was the best.
I would like to say though that there is a Gospel singer and guitar player named Greg Williams in Fresno Calif ,at The Open Door Ministries ,who has never competed....but has far more talent than these gentlemen.So I guess you'll never really hear the best.....but the film was fun

Almost something........2003-03-05

This is an interesting documentary. We follow three (we see and hear from many more) impersonators trying to get their chance to go to Memphis and become the 1999 Images of Elvis winner. It's strange to see the lengths some of these guys will go to trying to look and sing like E. We get to see impersonators from all over the world, Japan, Belgium; there are black Elvis', women Elvis', and young and old kings. In the deleted scene section we even meet the political correct Elvis. I was very disappointed in the presentation of the disc. It should have been presented in a wide screen format. Some of the information about the people like their names, places, or just general information about an event you can either barely read or you can't even make it out. It was like we were zoomed in to far on the picture. Anyway if you love Elvis Aron Presley or you just want a good chuckle check it out. Then rent Elvis: That's the way it is and check out the real thing.

is this what elvis was i dont think so.......2002-11-30

i used to follow the elvis men around and still do as well and i was at a party watching this so called elvis movie and i just happen to notace the person running this these are false elvises the one is so stuck up on his self its pathedic i allso know they block out people that want to join there elvis group dont know what kind of elvises this is but hey if a crappy film and boring and the funny part about it they dont sound or look nothin like our beloved king

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